Prepared by Downtown Professionals Network Batavia, Illinois www.downtownpros.com In Association With Michigan Main Street Center Michigan State Housing Development Authority Lansing, Michigan Prepared by Downtown Professionals Network Batavia, Illinois www.downtownpros.com in association with Michigan Main Street Center Michigan State Housing Development Authority Lansing, Michigan Population 2.5 Miles 5 Miles 10 Miles 2010 Census 5,788 12,854 46,351 2011 Estimate 5,749 12,858 46,485 2016 Projection 5,770 13,052 47,249 Change: 2011 – 2016 +0.4% +1.5% +1.6% Households 2.5 Miles 5 Miles 10 Miles 2010 Census 2,177 4,597 16,442 2011 Estimate 2,165 4,597 16,483 2016 Projection 2,187 4,702 16,869 Change: 2011 – 2016 +1.0% +2.3% +2.3% Median HH Income 2.5 Miles 5 Miles 10 Miles 2011 Estimate $45,735 $52,615 $54,856 2016 Projection $51,865 $57,178 $59,863 Change: 2011 – 2016 +13.4% +8.7% +9.1% ► ► ► ► ► Q. Would you consider living in downtown Wayland? ► Response Count Percent ► Yes 77 26% Maybe 49 16% No 172 58% Downtown Wayland | Consumer Online and Intercept Survey | 2012 ► ► ► The phrase, echoed throughout the decades, personifies the nature of changes in the economic landscape of traditional downtown and neighborhood commercial districts. Expanding retail competition, evolving technologies, and changing lifestyle trends continue to affect business opportunities and the ways in which people interact within the traditional downtown environment. The key to improving the economic performance of the Wayland downtown business district ultimately lies in the development and implementation of market-driven business improvement and marketing strategies that capitalize on local assets and emerging opportunities. Wayland DDA/Main Street Program, in conjunction with technical services and support provided by Michigan Main Street Center, spearheaded the Market Study and Business Development Strategies project to promote an in-depth understanding of local and regional market conditions and trends impacting the downtown district’s current economic performance and opportunities for the future. Information and direction gained throughout the market study and strategies development process will provide a sound basis for local decision-making processes and strategies aimed at enhancing the economic performance and social qualities of downtown Wayland. Technical assistance provided by DPN to facilitate the study process is furnished by Michigan Main Street Center as part of a comprehensive “self-help program” that provides extensive training and technical assistance to select Michigan Main Street network communities. Local Wayland Main Street project team members participated in a series of work sessions that provided guidance for the implementation of the Downtown Wayland Market Study. Key steps in the process also included: . The collection and review of background information. The analysis and summary of trade area demographic and economic data contained in ESRI reports. The performance of consumer surveys, business surveys, focus groups and a public workshop. An extensive amount of information and data was compiled and analyzed throughout the course of the market study process. This report has been prepared to highlight key information and findings that could be particularly relevant to the community’s ongoing downtown enhancement efforts. Wayland Main Street 120 West Superior Street Post Office Box 408 Wayland, Michigan 49348 (888) 417-6653 www.downtownwayland.com – – Study Objectives The study process was orchestrated to: ► Engage community and downtown stakeholders in an exploration of the market area and possibilities for the future of Wayland’s Main Street district ► Identify conditions that are impacting the Main Street Area’s economic performance ► Define the downtown’s geographic trade area and profile the trade area’s major consumer market segments ► Identify population and market trends in relation to potential business development and marketing strategies ► Identify potential business development opportunities and related business retention, expansion and recruitment strategies ► Assess potential for Downtown Wayland housing opportunities Key Planning Steps The process behind the completion of the Downtown Wayland Market Study engaged residents, business persons and community leaders in the exploration of opportunities for Downtown Wayland’s future. Key planning steps include: ► The collection and review of background materials and information, including a Downtown Blueprint completed in 2005 and a Downtown Renovation Study completed in 2006 ► Planning and strategy sessions conducted with the local Downtown Wayland Market Study project team comprised of Limitations and Disclaimers Wayland Main Street staff, volunteers and community leaders Retail market analyses, their components (such as retail sales gap analyses) and derivative business development ► An open invitation Downtown Wayland business development plans provide important guidance on how a commercial workshop area should, theoretically, be able to perform and on the sales levels businesses should be able to achieve. ► A visual assessment of existing conditions in the downtown However, a number of factors affect the actual district and the surrounding area performance of businesses and commercial areas, ► The performance of a field exercise to assist in determining the including the skills of the business operator, level of business capitalization, the quality of the physical dimensions of the downtown’s geographic trade area environment, changes in overall economic conditions, ► The procurement and analysis of trade area demographic, lifestyle the effectiveness of business and district marketing programs, and many other factors. The information in and economic data this report is intended to provide a foundation of ► The facilitation of primary research to examine specific information for making business development decisions, but it does not and cannot ensure business success. development opportunities and potential marketing concepts As is true of all demographic, economic and market studies, our analysis’ reliability is limited to the reliability Stakeholders from a broad cross-section of the Wayland community and quality of the data available. Our research assumes that all data made available by and procured from participated in the process to gain a solid understanding of Downtown federal, state, county, city, primary and third party Wayland opportunities as they relate to current conditions, market sources is accurate and reliable. characteristics and trends. The findings and results provide a solid basis Because market conditions change rapidly and upon which local leaders can make sound business decisions about the sometimes without warning, the information and future of the Wayland Main Street Area. opinions expressed here represent a snapshot in time and cannot predict or gauge future changes or results. – – Wayland, Michigan is located in Allegan County along Highway 131, north of Kalamazoo, and south of – and within easy access to – Grand Rapids. Wayland’s geographic proximity to Grand Rapids endows it with both some of the benefits, as well as some of the more challenging aspects, of existence as a “bedroom community.” The Main Street District serves as the effective “center of town,” and indeed is a center of commerce for other nearby communities, by virtue of its activity level and the business offerings contained in the district. More specifically, the Main Street district encompasses an approximate four block area composed of commercial, residential and historic spaces. The downtown area ranges east and west along Superior Street from Forrest Street to encompass some parcels just beyond Church Street, and along Main Street, from just beyond Maple Street to the north and to Hanlon Court to the south. Wayland Main Street Area Wayland’s downtown, which was once traversed by Highway 131, saw business development shift west when the highway became a four lane expressway and was relocated to the west of town. Today the downtown area is comprised of retailers that serve the day-to-day needs of Wayland and area residents, as well as a scattering of specialty retail. Some popular eating and drinking establishments in the district run the gamut from the town’s very popular coffee shop, to limited service specialty items like the ice cream shop, to the local family favorite restaurant serving home-style meals. The Main Street area is also home to many professional and service businesses from medical practitioners to insurance agencies, to pet care and salons. Immediately adjacent to, and even Intertwined with, the various commercial endeavors are residential properties. The downtown area also serves as the hub for city governmental services with City Hall being located centrally on Main Street. Many of the city’s historic structures are also found in the downtown district and include the historic Henika District Library on South Main Street. – – Development Patterns The downtown district is characterized by an admixture of traditional two-story commercial buildings arranged to form a streetwall that is inviting to pedestrians, and more auto-oriented uses, such as strip malls. The combination of this mix of orientations, along with frequent breaks in the streetwall in the form of parking lots, mini-parks, and perhaps most significantly the available parking and ready access through the rear of even the more traditionally pedestrian oriented blocks, may